Cardiff student sets up online resource for keen language learners

A postgraduate student at the School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies has set up a new online resource for language learners in Cardiff.

Lewis MacDonald, who is studying an MA in Broadcast Journalism, has set up the website, Glots of Cardiff as part of his course. Lewis hopes that the platform will become a place for language students to find helpful resources in their chosen language and to provide them with an arena in which to talk about their experiences.

Lewis has first-hand experience of learning another language after living in Germany for three years. While there he noticed how reticent learners were when using their new found language so one of the aims of his website is to encourage learners to be braver! He said, “Learners were often very shy about speaking to native speakers as they were worried about making mistakes. Of course it's good to aim to speak your chosen language well, but that shouldn't stop you from actually speaking it!”

Now that the website is live the next step is for Lewis to find language learners to be featured on it.  “I don't want to just extrapolate from my own experiences, but rather represent other people's, and I think it makes sense to try and focus on the Cardiff area / south east Wales where I'm living, rather than try to speak to the entire English-speaking world. So essentially the aim is to find out about and support people in Cardiff - students, people in employment, retired people, job-seekers and parents, on their language learning journeys and to help them to reach their goals.”

If you are a language learner who wants to be involved by suggesting resources that you find useful or if you want to be featured on the website, Lewis would love to hear from you. He can be contacted through the website or through social media channels Facebook and Twitter.